The Celtic/Folk group 'MicheMalou' (pronounced MishMaloo) was formed in autumn 2000 and features harps, guitars/bass guitar, bodhran and other instruments.
Marie-Louise Norton (Swiss) and Michele Cook (American) had both played together in another harp ensemble with which they had recorded a CD. They had the desire to start something new, and out of this desire 'MicheMalou' was born. Michele and Marie-Louise share the 'lead' harp duties.
They enlisted the help of Colin Norton (British) on bass guitar, guitar and percussion. Colin has a long musical history. He used to be a professional drummer with many different formations and has toured extensively in England, Scotland, Germany and Switzerland.
MicheMalou chose the music carefully to include pieces from Ireland, Scotland, England, Switzerland, Germany, and Austria, as well as America, combining it with their own original compositions. In fact, it is regular 'musical globetrotting!'
Their recordings include the following CDs:
‘Otherwhere Otherwhen’, which contains 14 tracks (three vocals) and was released in 2002.
‘Snow on Snow’, which includes 14 tracks (five vocals) and was released in 2004.
‘Faire Spirit’, which includes 11 tracks (four vocals) and was released in 2008.
MicheMalou is anything but a conventional group. The ancient traditions of Turlough O'Carolan have not been forsaken but are brought firmly into the 21st century. Although the regular line-up of MicheMalou features three members, there are occasions when they expand their ranks to include an extra vacalist, keyboardist, percussionist, guitarist, flautist, or even an alphorn player.
They are currently not accepting offers to play gigs, but are getting together for recordings whenever inspiration and creativity call.
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